Introduction and "The Tipping Point"

Hello! My name is Gayla Lowery, and I am a senior at Florida A&M University. I am currently majoring in public relations and plan to attend graduate school afterwards to receive a master's degree in finance. Public relations allows me to make a creative impact in the lives of businesses and people by helping to create meaningful, positive relationships. I love learning about special techniques and methods that I can apply to my major.

Recently, I read the book "The Tipping Point: How Little things Can Make a Big Difference" by Malcolm Gladwell. He defines "the tipping point" as that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire." There were a lot of interesting points raised in this book. I learned that there are three important people who can have a major influence on a tipping point. They are connectors, who bring people together. Mavens, who are researchers of various subjects and like to spread information. And salesmen, who persuade people to make a purchase or accept an idea. In the "Tipping Point," this idea is called the Law of the Few. When you want to convince a large number of people to act in a certain manner, these types of people will play a big part in how your message is delivered.

Another principle that was illustrated in the "Tipping Point" was the 80/20 Principle. It is the idea that in any situation roughly 80 percent of the "work" will be done by 20 percent of the participants. An example of this principle was displayed using the AIDS epidemic. In the mid-1990s in East St. Louis, MS, there was a man named Darnell "Boss Man" McGee, who would exploit young girls ages 13 and 14 years old at local pool halls and roller skating rinks. He would buy them expensive gifts, get them high on crack and have sex with them. Before his death a few years later, he slept with at least 100 women and infected at least 30 of them with HIV. He is an example of the 80/20 Principle because he was able to infect a large population with the disease.

Both the Law of the Few and the 80/20 Principle can be applied in public relations to make a positive impact. I found these two concepts to be most interesting and useful in "The Tipping Point." I would recommend any public relations practitioner to read this book because you, too, may find some interesting theories that you could apply to your practice. To find out more about "The Tipping Point," log onto www.gladwell.com/thetippingpoint/index.html